The knife that had been lodged in Valentine's chest for weeks twisted.
"What do you mean by missing?" he demanded.
Taranis rubbed at his beard. "I mean, I sent them north on a mission, and they haven't checked in. That's not unusual. I expected them to be busy and not able to use magic where they were going without calling attention to themselves."
He glanced about at the pub and back at the table. "Wrap this up. We can't talk about this here. Val, I know you have some resentment where Yelena is concerned, but I will need your help finding them."
Valentine hadn't seen Taranis worried since mating Quinn. He shared a look with his brothers. They were all thinking the same thing. The king of dragons was spooked.
Within minutes, they had paid the bill, and Taranis had opened a portal back to the castle. The faerie horses they had ridden in were already long gone.
"I've called a meeting, this way," Taranis said.
They moved up the stairs to Kian's private parlor, where Bayn, Killian, Mananan, Oberon, and Cosimo were already sitting by the fire, drinking whiskey.
Valentine looked about. "Just us?"
"This is fae and dragon business. I didn't want to upset the rest of the family until we need to," Taranis said.
The Greatdrakes pulled up more chairs, and Valentine poured himself a large whiskey from Kian's supply. He always had the best stuff, and Valentine was going to need something strong.
"All right, boys?" Cosimo asked, staring at his sons.
"We are fine, Dad. We only went to the pub," Apollo huffed and flopped down on an overstuffed couch.
Mananan cuffed him on the back of his head. "Leave a message next time. You boys had us all worried."
"Why? It's not like we are children and haven't gone to the pub before," Reeve asked.
"It's because Apollo was kidnapped," Bas said softly before anyone else could answer. "And this is about dragons."
"Exactly. No leaving the grounds at all until this is over," Kian replied and crossed his long legs. Even in repose, he managed to look intimidatingly royal. It was a shame they were family, and it didn't work on any of them.
Oberon grinned smugly. "And you told me growing an impenetrable forest around the castle was a bad idea."
"Because that's your answer for everything!" Kian replied.
"It's because it solves a multitude of problems. I tried to warn you they would go off on their own. They remind me of you three when you were their age," Oberon said, pointing at the princes.
"I have no recollection of disobeying anyone. I was an angel," Killian argued, his green eyes wide and innocent.
Bayn frowned. "I was the good one. I'm sure of it."
All three of their uncles snorted with laughter, and the tensionin the room eased a little. Valentine stood by the fire because he knew if he sat, his leg would start bouncing and give away just how anxious he was.
"What is this all about? Where are Avallach and Cae…Yelena?" he demanded when he couldn't handle it any longer.
From a couch beside Quinn, Taranis gave a long, tired sigh. "What do you boys know about King Midir?"
Valentine stretched his memory, but it was Cosimo who answered first.
"He is a character from an old Irish saga. He was a fae king who fell in love with a woman called Étaín, and there was something about him challenging the king of Ireland for her hand," he said, frowning.
Taranis snorted. "So you know nothing real about him. I suppose that will save us some time."
"He's a solid gold bastard, that’s what he is," Mananan added. "His land has bordered Taran's forever. He's always hated humans. His stronghold is next to impossible to find because he can manipulate the pathways leading to it. He was sniffing about the borders again, stirring up trouble. Rumor has it he’s lost his way in Ireland. For a male whose magic is all about roads and routes, that’s got to piss him off."
Taranis lifted his glass to his brother. "That is the long and the short of it. He was going into places he shouldn't, and I sent Yelena and Avallach to find out what the fuck is going on up in the north, where some of Midir's warriors were seen. He's a sneaky fucker who can take control of other creatures and manipulate them to do his bidding. He's always been jealous of the dragons."
